Afraid to put this in writing. Starting low carb today, Pre-op.

So, if it's in writing, I may actually have to stick with it.

My insurance made me put all my ducks in a row and have an approval before meeting with my surgeon.  I don't see him until April 7th and want to be down a few pounds before that.  I'm so torn between starting to eat like I will eat after surgery or just eating my brains out while I have the chance!!!  I can't gain any more weight, I am running out of clothes that fit me as it is and WILL NOT buy up a size one month or so before surgery.

I know it's the right thing to do, but I am going to struggle.  That's the whole reason I am having surgery, right?

 It all depends on you.  If you think you will have problems with compliance post-op, you may want to get serious now and get used to things.  If you are pretty good at sticking to the food rules, I wouldn't worry too much.

I personally am an "all-or-nothing" type of person. I ignoredthe pre-op diet until the 2 week liquid and ate a few things I knew i'd never get again.  Then at 2 weeks pre-op, I was all in and have cheated very little since.

I found the cravings were much less after surgery so the diet is not much of a problem.  The only time I have problems is during stressfull periods where I emotionally eat so I try VERY hard to avoid these.

If you are a constant emotional eater and cheat a lot it is best to address these things now through groups sessions.  

Of course your Dr always know best so forget everything I just said....

how bout mixing it up a lil bit? eat some of the things u like that u wont be able to after surgery in moderation...and make sure that your also eating healthy foods. Before my surgery i was required to lose 15-20 lbs. this kinda made it impossibble for me to have to worry about this but what i did do was after my last weigh in but before my 3 day liquid diet i picked one meal that i love that i knew after surgery would not be possibble for a while at least. It was my bil's homemade fried chicken. I had some but ate it in moderation...instead of having three or 4 pieces like i used to i ate one.

 I've only allowed myself a couple cheat days in the past 6 months of pre-op. I start my 2 week liquid diet next week. Those cheat days were - perhaps rationalization - allowing myself to get the foods that I know I'll miss really bad in the next year (or lifetime). I had one day where I really wanted to have one last taste of pizza. Today I had my pre-op physical & blood work and wanted one last taste of cookies. Granted, these aren't day long benders but just relaxation of the changed eating patterns that i'll have for the rest of my life. Eating my mind out is what got me to a high weight of 267. I don't ever want to go back to that. I saw someone quote "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels". I've never known that feeling but I know how proud of myself I'd been at really embodying the change necessary for this surgery. The work comes before, during, AND after, so I'm really encouraging you to make every effort to stick with the pre-op diet. It's hard in the beginning, I'm not gonna lie, but to give you hope, I'd really gotten to the point where the cravings were way down and I could tolerate my husband eating his high-metabolism-having crappy food  in front of me (though I still stare at his leftovers in the fridge at times and say out loud "I hate you" to the food). 

The more weight you can lose now before surgery the healthier you'll be. However, most post ops wait until after their initial visit with the doc to get their highest weight on their records to comply with insurance requirements. Try to eat better once you see the doc, drop a few pounds before your surgery date as it will make surgery quicker and less risk if you're at a lower weight. On the other hand, most of us do have a last meal or two. Indulge is you need to pre op - it's the best time to, afterwards you'll want to follow the rules and make the most of the surgery tool you've been given. We all had our last supper (and most of us remember exactly what it was-lol) so use your descretion on what you need to eat - but remember as restrictive as it sounds you will be able to eat almost everything you ate before surgery - just in much smaller portions. good luck at your appointment.
Jen 9+ yrs post op

The more weight you take off before surgery, the better off you are on all counts. Fat content in your internal organs, cardiovascular health, all of those things can make a big difference in helping you survive surgical & post-op complications as well as getting you a head start so that you have less to get to goal during your golden window.

Good for you for putting it in writing in public and taking first steps to accountability.

The mourning process is a natural normal thing, and is your first challenge of the journey. Do some introspection, make a list of the things that you thik you will miss. Then go back through the list and challenge it... do you really feel like you are never going to have this thing again, or is it that you can just not have it in volume or in a particular way? Put the list in order of priority, then take the first few - maybe enough for one a week? - and honour the mourning. Indulge in it... in moderation. Say good bye, let it go. It's all part of effecting change in the way you meet the world and find what nourishes you. Doing the process mindfully allows you some conrol and better yet... a ton of insight into who you are and what will bedifficult for you.